PackLandVA

How much $$ would the Cubs realistically need top absorb before the season to make Soriano worth trading for?

She looks like Peter Gammons....which is not a good thing for either of them.

Did Jed specify which field?? :-k

Not to mention Castro at short. But Steve Stone says Castro is not a MLB SS. I heard him say it several times. [-X

Ask her, she'd know. http://img.poptower.com/pic-64254/bridesmaids-movie.jpg?d=600

http://i1.cpcache.com/product/127978109/frankie_says_relax_shirt.jpg?color=White

I'm wondering if BearClaw's true name is Frankie. And I'll bet he's from Hollywood!

Forgive me if this has been answered already, but my eyes can't really take reading through 200+ pages of the other "Theo" thread. But I have a couple of questions: -The Red Sox have authorized the Cubs to negotiate a contract, which apparently has already been agreed to. Can Theo "advise" the Cubs as to what he thinks they should give up to the Red Sox? -If he's not allowed to advise the Cubs concerning compensation, is he allowed to "renegotiate" his deal with the Cubs, thus allowing him to "advise" the Cubs under the table? -What would the Red Sox gain by not allowing him to advise the Cubs on a compensation package? It's not like he's gonna "pull one over" on the Sox brass. -If he's not in the compensation negotiations, shouldn't he be (assuming he's allowed to be by the Sox)? Maybe what Randy Bush thinks is too much, Theo would think is worth it. Like I said, sorry if this is already mentioned in the other thread. But it's too long for me to check. Thanks!

I think the owner's prints are on this hire. And it's a P.R. move first and a baseball move second. Reinsdorf basically said so in the first line of his statement: "Robin is one of the most popular and highly regarded players in this franchise's history." Ventura has zero coaching experience and has only been back in MLB in a limited capacity) since June of this past summer. This hire is akin to splittings 10s in blackjack. It may end up working out, but it's the wrong move no matter how you slice it.

According to this Link , Francona is OUT!!

Count me out then! http://timesfour.com/x4graemlins/icon_cheesehead.gif http://timesfour.com/x4graemlins/icon_gopack.gif

I get the business side of it regarding contracts. And I get that he's probably smart enough to know his shortcomings, assuming he believes he is not overly qualified regarding the evaluation of amateur talent, and the need to bring in scouts for minor league building. But isn't a huge part of being a GM also is recognizing major league talent with regard to the free agent market and trades? I mean, sure, he may not dole out bad contracts, but I want t GM to know when to buy and when to sell. And if he's learning this from Kenny Williams, I'm not sold. Also, do we really want to hand over the baseball side of the operation to a guy filling the role of GM for the first time? I trust Rickett's will make a well thought out choice. Hope it's a good one, because it's gonna determine the next decade or more of Cubs' success.

What is it about Hahn's background that makes him such a desirable candidate? I don't know much about him other than his ties to the White Sox. As someone else pointed out in another thread, he's never been a GM, and the one he currently works for hasn't done much to build a farm system, and hasn't really been a huge success as far as free agency/trades go. KW has made some good ones (in both categories) but he's also crapped the bed on just as many. I know the got the WS in '05, but is that the overriding factor. I'm not knocking Hahn, but what are his credentials? His advanced degrees make him seem more suited for Crane Kenney's job.

http://insider.espn.go.com/mlb/blog?name=olney_buster&id=6881791 But... http://espn.go.com/blog/new-york/yankees/post/_/id/22113/cashman-an-attractive-candidate-for-cubs Here's an "article from S&S Sports Business Daily" that says Cashman signed his new 3 year deal 0n September 30, 2008. That leads me to believe the deal ends on the last day of this season.

Chuck Noland's bestest friend!

This is exactly what I would do! I hate the White Sox so much and am so jealous of their WS in 2006, I wouldn't even interview Hahn. I would love a WS for the Cubs in my lifetime, but deep down inside would feel that it took a White Sox front office guy to get the Cubs to the promised land. Don't think I could live knowing that! Would it help to know that the White Sox didnt win the World Series in 2006? OK would it help to know that Hahn is a diehard Cub fan, grew up one, and still roots for the Cubs when they arent playing the White Sox (and probably would root for the Cubs over the White Sox but can't admit that), and because of this story it would be completely forgotten almost immediately that he had a tie to the White Sox? Fixed it to read "2005". Not familiar with the whole "green means sarcasm", but it really wasn't sarcasm. It was more of the irrational Cub fan not wanting anyone from the White Sox Org to be part of the Cubs winning a WS. The rational side of me says to get the best people available, regardless of their background, etc. Poor attempt at levity. Maybe I should post less and lurk more!

This is exactly what I would do! I hate the White Sox so much and am so jealous of their WS in 2005[edited], I wouldn't even interview Hahn. I would love a WS for the Cubs in my lifetime, but deep down inside would feel that it took a White Sox front office guy to get the Cubs to the promised land. Don't think I could live knowing that! Of course, I have no where near the business acumen that Tom Ricketts does. He would most likely not even consider the pettiness of this thought, and therefore would make a decision based on things that actually matter. Tom Ricketts own the Chicago Cubs. I occasionally visit message boards and post thoughts hoping not to embarrass myself! Go Tom Go!!

Are you a Cubs fan? Have you been so for a very long time?

Thanks guys (and/or gals)! I appreciate the feedback. Any other comments are surely welcome!

Anyone ever taken the Wrigley Field Tour offered by the Cubs (as opposed to some private tour)? I'm thinking about going with a few people in a couple of weeks. It would be on a non-game day (day off between road trip and coming home). How long is the tour? Worth the $25? Positives or negatives? Thanks!

How common is it for a player to be traded in the last year (last few months) of his contract only to re-sign the following season with the team that traded him?

That's the same logic da'Coach uses at the beginning of "Who Ya' Crappin'?'".

I couldn't understand why the Cubs were letting Davis make his past 4-5 starts. Thought the experiment should've ended a few weeks ago. The I found out he got his 10 years. Kudos to the Cubs....classy move! :good:

Was listening to the local sports radio yesterday and Steve Stone was on commenting about his beloved Sox (he kept referring to them as "we") and the "Northsiders". While defending his position about Starlin Castro probably NOT being a future SS (which the host didn't get Stone's logic, either), he mentioned Castro's defense and the fact that Hendry traded away a young, better defender in HJ Lee. Stone went on to mention that "Hendry traded away 'winning in the future' for a 'win today' in the Garza deal". I called the station, got through and had a chance to ask for a clarification from Stone. I said, in a nutshell: -Garza was still pretty young by MLB standards and has already had proven MLB success; -the Cubs still controlled Garza for several more years; -and Garza's last three seasons in the American League East, he posted a sub-4.00 ERA. I then asked Stone why the deal couldn't be looked at as a "win now" and a "win in the future" deal from the Cubs standpoint. Certainly Garza could be a valuable asset today and several years from now. I certainly won't kid myself thinking I flustered Stone with my question. After all, he's a jag-bag, but he knows a hell of a lot more baseball than I ever will. But I thought his answer sucked and was typically negative concerning a "Hendry move". He basically said he didn't really know how long the Cubs controlled Garza and mentioned nothing of his age. He then went on to make the point that Garza's success was probably related to pitching at home in the Rays "pitcher friendly" ball park and his home/away splits from last year were not good. He did mention, briefly, that Garza pitched in the AL East, but quickly pivoted to Garza being a flyball pitcher and how that doesn't relate well in Wrigley. Then he went on to talk about how Hendry is really counting on this trade because he's made several poor trades in the past. Now certainly Stone made some valid points about Garza's splits. But did he have to be such a douche concerning my question? He didn't really answer it, and along the way made sure to blast Hendry. And while the merits of the trade won't be known for some time, Stone gives the impression that Archer and Lee are locks regarding MLB success. The man has issues!

Mike Fontenot May 28th of last year against St. Louis. Dunston had 3 once didn't he?? Charlie Hollocher, Ernie Banks, and Shawon Dunston all had 3 triples in one game for the Cubs. I remember the Cubs hit three consecutive triples - Jerry Morales, surprisingly Dave Kingman and a third players whose name escapes me.